750 Sparkman High students miss class due to rumors of shooting

HARVEST, Alabama - About 750 Sparkman High School students were absent from class Wednesday following the threat of a shooting at the school that blew up cyberspace this week.

Dr. David Copeland (The Huntsville Times)

Superintendent David Copeland said in a morning news conference, however, that "there was never a credible threat" to students' safety.

"It was all rumors," Copeland said at the news conference, held at Sparkman.

District officials and the Madison County Sheriff's Office began investigating the rumors over the weekend, immediately after the Twitter and Facebook rumors came to the district's attention, the superintendent said. The rumors included allegations that a teen involved in a fight at the school last week planned to bring a gun to school Wednesday, once his suspension was lifted.

By Monday, investigators had determined that the initial tweet regarding something happening at the school on Wednesday came from a student who had nothing to do with last week's fight, Copeland said. The original tweet was from a student angry over an incident where another student badmouthed his girlfriend, he said.

The students involved in the fight had no part in the rumors, Copeland said.

The superintendent said he has gotten some feedback from parents upset that they were not notified of the situation by the school. He said he wants parents to understand that the district takes all rumors regarding students' safety seriously and investigates them thoroughly.

Sheriff's deputies recommended that the district not notify parents to keep the panic to a minimum, he said.

"This didn't rise to the level where we needed to call parents," Copeland said. "If there is ever anything we think is a true and credible threat, we will notify parents."

Sgt. Brian Chaffin with the Sheriff's Office on Tuesday told The Times that there was no direct threat made to the school.

Copeland said it was not yet clear if the absentee teens, who make up about 42 percent of the school's 1,800 students, would be excused for missing school. It was also unclear if they would be allowed to make up tests given Wednesday.